This invention relates to ski paraphernalia carrying baskets. More particularly, this invention relates to ski paraphernalia carrying baskets having mechanisms for securely mounting same onto chair ski lifts.
Downhill skiing, also known as alpine skiing, has become a very popular sport over the past several decades. Typically, downhill skiing involves skiing down lengthy slopes, also known as ski runs, of perhaps several hundred yards long to perhaps about a mile or more long, some of which ski runs are also quite steep in order to allow for expert skiers to obtain considerable speed. Accordingly, ski lifts are provided for carrying skiers from the bottom of the ski runs to the top of the ski runs.
The most common type of ski lift is a chair ski lift having a frame member suspended from a cable, a chair portion mounted on the frame member, and a substantially horizontally disposed elongate safety bar mounted on the chair portion for pivotal movement about a substantially horizontal pivot axis. The safety bar is selectively moveable in an arcuate path between a passenger safety position and an entry-exit position through manual manipulation of an elongate substantially horizontal handle disposed rearwardly of the chair portion. In the passenger safety position, the safety bar is disposed forwardly of an apex balance point and in blocking relation directly in front of the chair portion of the chair ski lift so as to preclude skiers sitting in the chair portion from unintentionally exiting the ski lift before reaching the top of the ski run. In the entry exit position, the safety bar is disposed above and rearwardly of the chair ski lift and rearwardly of the apex balance point, to permit easy ingress and egress of the skier or skiers from the chair.
When ascending a ski hill in a conventional chair ski lift, there is no place for a skier to temporarily set down various ski paraphernalia such as gloves, goggles, hats, and so on. Typically, goggles and hats simply remain in place on the skier""s head, with the goggles removed from covering the eyes. However, it is quite common to remove one""s gloves so as to wipe or blow the nose. If gloves, or even hats and goggles, are removed while in a chair ski lift, they must either be placed in one""s lap, or on the chair portion of the ski lift. As a result, they tend to be dropped during the ascent up the ski run, and possibly not found subsequently. Ski gloves may also be clipped to the skier""s jacket, but this is very inconvenient and is generally not done.
At the same time, a new trend in the advertising industry has been to develop new and innovative sites for the placement of revenue producing advertising. In the context of this invention, the term xe2x80x9cthird partyxe2x80x9d advertisement contemplates an arms length advertiser that is ordinarily neither the supplier of the invention nor the operator of the chair ski lift on which the invention is employed, although neither is precluded.
Exemplary U.S. Patents that relate to unique advertising include: Boudreau, U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,417, Boudreau, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,878,665, Dark, U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,384, Hannon, U.S. Pat. No. 5,190,283, Hageman, U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,044, and Mabie, U.S. Pat. No. 5,788,581. So far as is presently known, there are no issued patents teaching the provision of a device for the storage of ski paraphernalia on a chair ski lift, and almost certainly there are no patents on the placement of removable and replaceable third party paid advertising on such a storage device on a chair ski lift.
In response to the foregoing, the present inventor conceived of and built an advertising ski paraphernalia basket that could be securely mounted to the safety bar of a chair ski lift. The basket is described in Patent Application Publication US 2002/0017542 A1. This is the first device for storing ski paraphernalia on a chair ski lift known to the Inventor. The basket may be used by the skier as a convenient repository for belongings. In addition, the basket is extremely valuable to advertisers. While the chair lift ascends and descends the slope, skiers are a captive audience. Accordingly, advertisers may place advertisements at strategic locations in the basket to maximize exposure to the skiers.
Notwithstanding the advantages provided by the present Inventor""s chair ski lift basket, in experimental trials, the inventor observed a problem with the basket in that over time the basket began to rotate relative to the chair ski lift safety bar. This is undesirable as the skiers"" belongings may be inadvertently dumped from the basket as the skier ascends and/or descends the slope. It is believed that the basket rotation is due to at least one or more of the following: 1) temperature changes that occur during the ski season, which at most ski resorts extends from November to April, 2) vibration from constant use of the baskets, 3) constant movement of the safety bar, 4) vibration from the chair movement over its travel course and 5) vandalism.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for an improved ski paraphernalia basket that resists rotation about the chair lift safety bar.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a ski paraphernalia basket for use with a chair ski lift.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an attachment mechanism for securing a ski paraphernalia basket to a ski lift chair.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a site for removable and replaceable third party paid advertising in combination with a ski paraphernalia basket for use with a chair ski lift.
It is yet an another object of the present invention to provide a site for removable and replaceable third party paid advertising in combination with a ski paraphernalia basket for use with a chair ski lift, which basket effects dumping of ski paraphernalia inadvertently remaining within the basket, rearwardly of the chair portion of the ski lift when the safety bar is in the entry-exit position.
Various other objects, advantages, and features of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the appended drawings and claims.
The present invention accomplishes the above stated objectives, as well as others, as may be determined by a fair reading and interpretation of the entire specification.
In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ski paraphernalia basket for a chair ski lift having a pivotally moveable safety bar. The basket includes a floor suitable for receiving ski paraphernalia, first and second side walls extending upwardly from the floor, front and rear walls extending upwardly from the floor, the front wall including an exterior surface, and an attachment device disposed on the front wall. In keeping with the invention, the attachment device has an inner fastening block disposed on the exterior surface which includes a recesses, the recess is configured to cradle the safety bar. The attachment device further includes a hose clamp and an outer fastening block. The outer fastening block has a recess shaped to cradle the safety bar and a sub recess shaped to receive the clamp.
The invention is also be realized by a ski paraphernalia basket and a chair ski lift safety bar, in combination. In accordance with this aspect of the invention, the basket has a floor suitable for receiving ski paraphernalia, first and second sidewalls extending upwardly from the floor, and front and rear walls extending upwardly from the floor. The front wall includes an exterior surface. A chair ski lift safety bar is provided together with an attachment device for securely attaching the basket to the chair ski lift safety bar. The attachment device includes an inner fastening block having a recess disposed on the exterior surface. A hose clamp is preferably disposed about the safety bar and lodged in the recess of the inner fastening block. An outer fastening block is coupled to the inner fastening block, the outer fastening block has a recess that receives the safety bar and a sub recess that houses the hose clamp.
The invention is further realized by a method of attaching a ski paraphernalia basket to a chair lift safety bar. The method includes tightening a hose clamp about the safety bar, aligning the hose clamp with the inner fastening block; and
coupling the outer fastening block to the inner fastening block and positioning the hose clamp within the sub recess of the outer fastening block.